Feed concentrates

In our section on Caring for Horses: Feeding and Nutrition (see menu to the left), we explain why feeding horses good quality hay is usually not enough to guarantee they will remain strong and healthy. For that reason, it is necessary to include a quality feed concentrate in your feeding regimen. Here are the products we have used and recommend. You can find a dealer who sells them near you by clicking on this link which will take you to the Purina site.

Note: We do not receive any kind of compensation for making these recommendations.

For most adult horses, we recommend Purina Strategy feed concentrate. It has the right amount of protein, vitamins, and minerals to keep horses healthy and strong.

Some horses get too "hot" when fed Strategy, or seem to develop more soreness or lameness problems. For these horses, we've found that Purina Enrich is perfect. Not too much carb, the right amount of protein, and the vitamins and minerals horses need.

For the older horse, Purina Senior fits the bill. The feed is easier to chew and digest, and a bit of molasses is added to tempt the appetite.

For horses that are insulin resistant, Purina's WellSolve Low Starch is perfect. We once had an insulin resistant horse in our facility whose feet and joints were so sore that she was a terror to shoe. Only one farrier in the area would even attempt it. We switched her from the feed concentrate she had been receiving at her previous barn and put her on WellSolve. The difference was dramatic. Her sore feet were no longer sore, the quality of her hooves improved, her disposition improved, and she no longer seemed "sore all over".

Finally, for high performance horses who are "hard keepers", we recommend Purina Ultium. Because it is also low carb and high in fats, some people try to feed it to their "hot" horses with the hope that it will calm them down. Do NOT use Ultium for horses who are simply "hot". This is a very high calorie feed and is meant for horses that are involved in intense competition and burn calories like crazy. For those horses (like endurance or three day eventers), this is a great product.

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